Thankfully, the film picks up when Raees’ life takes a dramatic turn, which leads to a high-voltage climax. The pace slackens soon after the intermission and the romantic song and a few sequences act as spoilers. He takes a leap as a storyteller, doing justice to the written material and extracting bravura performances from each and every member of the cast.īlemishes? Oh yes! The first hour unravels at a feverish pace, making you thirst for the second half. He maintains the realism, ensures that the pace and energy seldom dip… but, most importantly, he makes sure SRK’s legion of fans aren’t disappointed. This is a big ticket film with SRK and Dholakia knows that the stakes are high. The narrative moves seamlessly from romance to the game of one-upmanship as the criminal and cop collide. But he does an about-turn with RAEES, for the film marries realism and masala wonderfully. One look at his body of work and you realize he tilts more towards realism than make-believe. Resultantly, the movie not only brings back memories of the 1980s, but also gives you the feel of the days gone by thanks to the characters and episodes highlighted in the narrative.ĭholakia is not really known to be a hardcore commercial film-maker. While the production design recreates the atmosphere flawlessly, Dholakia and his team of writers ensure that the written material has the power to keep the viewer engaged and engrossed.
Recreating the bygone era is a Herculean task, but the toughest part is to involve the present-day audience that’s clueless about the characters and ambience of that era. Enter Jaideep, a cop, who vows to eliminate crime… and Raees’ empire. His natural flair for entrepreneurship and never-say-die determination while achieving his goals makes him both loved and feared. Here’s the plotline in succinct…Set in 1980s, Raees is trying to beat the system and succeed on his terms. Having said that, I must admit, what takes the film notches higher is the terrific portrayal by SRK and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who breathe fire in their respective parts. RAEES follows a similar graph as well… the only difference being, this one is more realistic in approach than several films of this genre.ĭirector Rahul Dholakia depicts the power play and the cat and mouse chase between Raees and the honest cop Jaideep with flourish and that, in my opinion, is the mainstay of the enterprise. There’s tremendous speculation about RAEES… That the story is inspired by true events… That it’s based on a real-life character… Frankly, I am not the right person to comment on the authenticity of characters/episodes depicted in the movie or verify the speculations, but as a moviegoer, I must confess, RAEES did transport me to its world.Ī majority of films that highlight the lives of criminals/gangsters have a set template vis-à-vis the plotline: An ordinary person takes to crime, becomes a hotshot criminal, hobnobs with the rich, influential and powerful, but, eventually, the law decides to get even with him. There’s something about films based on gangsters, criminals and underworld… Have often wondered, why are several film-makers across the globe so fascinated by this genre? Though I am not a huge fan of this genre, I must confess, I have thoroughly enjoyed a number of crime sagas made in Mumbai: DEEWAAR, DHARMATMA, PARINDA, AGNEEPATH, SATYA, VAASTAV, GANGSTER, SHOOTOUT AT LOKHANDWALA, ONCE UPON A TIME IN MUMBAAI… Helmed by some of the best names in showbiz, these films have tremendous recall value and left giant footprints on the sands of time, besides leaving an indelible impression on my mind.
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